


May 31st

by AlexTheFryingPan



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: (plot twist it's the same person), Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Asexual Character, Dork Will Solace, Everyone Is Gay, F/F, I think that's it? - Freeform, Lesbian Character, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Other Ships Not Mentioned in Tags, Starts in middle school, Trans Will Solace, fluff!, thalia and nico are punk dorks and i love them, the rest is in high school
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-27
Updated: 2018-02-26
Packaged: 2019-03-24 13:15:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,468
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13811940
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlexTheFryingPan/pseuds/AlexTheFryingPan
Summary: “I hate you,” said Thalia.“Yeah, you should,” he said. “So about this pact?”“We’ll give it a month,” she said. “A month from tomorrow, since we can’t really do anything today. So by May 31st, I have to talk to Reyna, and you have to ask Solace out.”aka, Nico's had a crush on Will Solace since he punched a kid off of him. Thalia started having a gay crisis the exact moment Reyna asked her out. They decide to make a pact.





	May 31st

“Dude, someone’s coming,” one of the kids standing above Nico said, tearing the ringleader away from Nico. His face was rotten, his eyes looking like they could pop out of his head at any moment. The ringleader, a taller boy with a nasty scar over his nose, turned towards whoever the rotting kid was talking about, then tore his shoulder away from his grip.

“ _She’s_ not important,” Scar-Nose said, his face contorting into a sneer. “What’s she gonna do anyway?” Nico jolted when a kick to the stomach interrupted his brief peace.

“Hey!” someone shouted, hurried footsteps coming closer. “Leave him alone!” The rotting kid looked nervous in Nico’s peripheral vision.

In elementary school, the days before summer vacation were trademarked with periodical arts and crafts projects and extra recesses. For Nico di Angelo, the days before summer vacation were trademarked with getting pushed into walls and being beat up behind the school. Nico wished he could warn the kid. Like, ‘hey! It’s fine! This happens all the time!’ but he couldn’t find the words.

“Ignore it,” said the tallest of the gang. The new kid did not allow this, however, because with the next kick to Nico’s abdomen, a flash of gold swept in front of Nico with hands on hips and chest puffed out.

“Leave. Him. Alone.” The golden boy’s voice was stiff, angry, and higher pitched than Nico had expected. Scar-Nose snorted, looking back and forth between his friends, all but the rotting kid looked amused.

“Get out of my way, dyke,” he said, pushing the kid away by the shoulder, not seeming to feel the angry heat radiating off of the golden boy the same way Nico did.

“Don’t touch him!” the kid shouted, and suddenly Scar-Nose was stumbling backwards, his hands around his nose, and the golden boy was leaning forwards, his hands no longer on his hips, and the group of boys were running off, stumbling over each other.

“What the _hell_ ,” muttered Scar-Nose. He checked his hand to check for blood. He seemed surprised by what he saw, looking up at the golden boy with wide eyes. “What the hell is _wrong_ with you?”

“You might want to get out of here,” the golden boy said. “And you should check that out. Seems pretty bad.” Nico and the golden boy watched Scar-Nose run away.

“Nice punch,” said Nico after a moment. He spat just about where Scar-Nose had been standing, the coppery taste giving him a bad feeling. “I would know, I’ve had enough of them thrown at me.”

The golden boy scratched at the back of his neck, staring down at the ragged ground that no one had been keeping up. “Yeah, uh, thanks.” His voice was still high, like he had just sucked a bunch of helium. “Sorry it took me so long.”

“No, it’s fine,” said Nico. He shrugged, hissing when it hurt more than he thought it would. The golden boy kneeled down in front of Nico, concerned eyes burning a hole through his head and into his brain. “Still ok,” said Nico.

“You’re not,” said the golden boy. He rubbed at the knee of his jeans. “Can I help you?”

“Seriously, I’m fine,” said Nico, sitting up. The golden boy’s hands hovered around Nico, making sure he didn’t fall.

“For some strange reason, I don’t believe you,” said the golden boy. “But, uh, I guess I’ll let that go. For now. I’m Will Solace.” Nico smiled at him.

“I’m Nico di Angelo. Nice to meet you,” he said. Will Solace smiled kindly, his lips shoving up his cheeks.

“Yeah, yeah. It was nice meeting you too. Shout for me next time, right?” Nico nodded unconsciously.

“Yeah, of course,” said Nico. Will nodded once. He took a moment to stare at Nico, almost in awe.

He checked the time.

“Oh no!” he said. He ran a hand through his hair, jumping up. “I’ve got to go, I’ve got soccer, sorry. I’ll see you later?” Nico felt himself smile the tiniest bit.

“I suppose I will,” he said.

Will smiled gratefully, then turned to run towards the soccer pitch. Nico watched him go with a strange feeling in his stomach.

* * *

“Solace, huh?” asked Thalia. She popped her gum loudly. “Didn’t peg him as your type.”

Nico groaned, covering his face with his hands. “Normally, he wouldn’t be,” he said. “Or at least I don’t think so. He punched a kid in sixth grade. As soon as somebody punches an asshole, my brain’s immediately telling me to tap that.” Thalia snorted. She was messing with her lip piercing.

“That’s real gay, di Angelo,” she said. Nico shrugged helplessly. “Accent, right?”

“He’s from Texas,” said Nico. She flicked at the chipping paint on the curb.

“That was the question,” she said. She let out a long breath, almost like she was blowing smoke from a cigarette. “I guess he’s cute for a guy.”

“You say that as if you’re into girls,” said Nico. She shrugged.

“I’m still more into girls than I am dudes,” she said. “Now tell me, lover boy, what’s up with Solace that makes you all hot and bothered.” He shoved her over while she cackled.

He realized after a moment how the two of them looked.

Thalia, with her almost stereotypically punk hair and her spiked up leather jacket. Her t-shirt boasted some indie-rock band from the 90s that Nico could almost guarantee she had only listened to once, her jeans were so big and ripped up that he was sure she had stolen them from her dad then ran them over with her car too many times for her to remember, and her Doc Martens that she had totally stolen from some chick she met at a concert.

Nico himself, with his stupid black earrings he had forced his dad to pay for without him knowing and his too-long shaggy black hair. His skull shirt that looked as if it were stolen from a cartoon bully from the early 2000s. His skinny jeans that looked like they could be found exclusively at Hot Topic, and his converse that he stole from his sister’s room. He looked like white-trash burnout to the extreme.

The two of them were the epitome of teenagers that parents would tell their kids not to hang out with.

“You’re the worst,” he said once she had finally collected herself. Her eyes sparkled with mirth in the light of the 7-Eleven logo they sat below. A breeze rushed past them as she grinned at him.

“Sure I am,” she said, shrugging. She leaned back on her hands.

“My question still stands, though. Why are you so into him?”

“I did, like, just tell you he punched a kid for me in sixth grade, right?” She punched his shoulder.

“You never told me it was for you, dumbass. You just said he was an asshole!” Nico waved her off.

“Whatever. The point still stands, he punched a guy, and then proceeds to just get hotter and hotter as time goes on,” he said. He slurped at his slurpee.

“Fun,” said Thalia. She popped her gum.

“So what are you gonna do about it?”

“Nothing,” said Nico. “What would you do about it.”

She fixed him with an unimpressed stare. “What would I do about it, Nico di Angelo?”

“Good point,” he said. She nodded.

A woman buying candy bars and soda glared at them as they passed, no doubt thinking nasty thoughts about teenagers. Thalia made a big show of popping her gum. The woman left with a huff.

“You should do something,” she said.

“What exactly should I do, then?” asked Nico. “If I remember correctly, you aren’t exactly known for acting on stuff either.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said. Nico raised an eyebrow.

“Didn’t Reyna ask you out this morning?” Nico asked, and he knew he had won when Thalia’s face indulged in some rare color for once in her life. He smirked. “Thought so.”

“What _ever_ ,” she said, clearly bested. “It doesn’t matter, this is about you, not me.”

“Oh no, darling Thalia, I think this is about more than me,” he said. She sighed, stretching out her legs lazily to look at her Doc Martens.

“Fine,” she said after a moment. “I’ll tell you what, we’ll make a pact.”

“My interest is piqued,” said Nico. She rolled her eyes.

“You’re fancy rich people words don’t work on me, di Angelo,” she said, popping her gum again.

“Just tell me what you’re thinking, fuckwad,” he said.

“I’ll talk to Reyna if you talk to Solace,” she said.

“You just have to turn her down,” said Nico. “That’s so much simpler than asking someone out.” Thalia scratched at the back at her neck.

“So, uh, here’s the thing,” she said. Nico picked his slurpee back up. “I kind of, uh, like, have a little, tiny, microscopic, uh, thing. For Reyna.” Nico’s eyes widened.

“You have a _what_ _now_?” She winced.

“Yeah, uh, I know.”

“Oh my god, gross,” he said. “I liked you because you weren’t into romance.”

“It’s not, like, a mushy-gushy thing,” she said. “It’s complicated, I guess. I don’t know. I don’t think I can turn her down.”

“Fucking plot twist,” said Nico.

“I hate you,” said Thalia.

“Yeah, you should,” he said. “So about this pact?”

“We’ll give it a month,” she said. “A month from tomorrow, since we can’t really do anything today. So by May 31st, I have to talk to Reyna, and you have to ask Solace out.”

“Ok,” said Nico. “What will our reward be?” She thought for a moment longer.

“We’ll have a movie night or something,” she said. “We’ll watch some shitty movie and I’ll buy chinese takeout.”

“Aren’t you vegan?”

“There’s vegan options!” she said. “Besides, we’ve got a whole month to maybe think about the possibility of a reward.”

“You’re right, I guess,” said Nico. He held out his hand. Thalia stared at it for a moment. “Shake it,” he said. “To seal the pact.” She raised an eyebrow, but she did, shaking only once and dropping his hand.

They both then immediately scanned the area to make sure nobody saw them being decidedly Not Cool.

She looked back at him while she wiped her hand on her jeans. “Wanna come over?” she asked. “We have Italian leftovers.”

“I’m not sure if you’re trying to make a joke or not,” he said. She rolled her eyes.

“Whatever, di Angelo. You’re coming whether you like it or not,” she said. She stood up and threw her gum out, only to replace it with a cigarette she wasn’t going to light. She grabbed her car keys and they left with little ceremony but the blaring of her speakers.

* * *

Nico plonked his boots on the desk in front of him, cracking his textbook open. He had spent the majority of his Algebra 2 class staring at the back of Will Solace’s head and it was not faring him well for the homework. He tried to read for a total of about 5 minutes when he gave up on polynomials, letting his forehead drop on the top edge of the textbook.

“I can help you with that, you know,” a voice sounded from above Nico. He looked up with a start. Was that really…

“I’m Will Solace, by the way. I’m in your Alg class,” he said, and Nico most definitely was underestimating how beautiful this guy was, because his freckles just about took his breath away. His sweater was about 2 sizes too big, like his grandmother had bought it for him bearing in mind that he would ‘grow into it’. His jeans were ripped, but it was obvious that he had earned his rips, that he did something to merit them rather than buying them at the store pre-ripped.

“Oh, yeah, that would be, uh, cool,” said Nico, cursing himself. Why did he have to be so awkward? “And I know you’re in my Algebra class. You’re like, the only person who knows any of the answers. I’m Nico di Angelo.”

“I know,” said Will, and his absolutely gorgeous beam faltered for a moment. “I mean, I pay attention in class and stuff, and, like, you’re in my English class and you’re the only person that cares and, uh, I’m making it worse.” He snapped his mouth shut.

“No, it’s, uh, fine,” said Nico, and he could tell his face wasn’t looking too good either. “I can help you out with English, if you’d like.”

Will’s eyes widened. “Would you? Omigod that class is murdering me,” he said, apparently putting his embarrassment behind him. That was the thing with Will Solace. He never had any lasting shame. Ever.

“Yeah, of course. Only if you help me with Algebra, though,” he said.

Will shook his head with a grin. “This is the simplest trade off I’ve ever made. Of _course_ I’ll help you.”

Nico smiled up at him, surprising even himself. He could almost feel Thalia scoffing at him. “Yeah, I would probably die for you as of now,” he said. Will laughed.

“Thanks I guess,” he paused for a moment. “Why don’t I give you my number so we can talk about this?” he said.

“It would be better if I gave you mine,” said Nico. At Will’s puzzled look he clarified, “I’m pretty terrible at being the first person to text. I can’t even list everyone that I’ve totally ghosted because I kept on chickening out of talking to them.”

“Oh,” said Will. He smiled and pulled out his phone and unlocked it. He gave it to Nico with a flourish. “We don’t want that, now do we?” he asked. Nico looked up at him for a moment before looking down at the phone to hide his blush.

The home screen was some soccer team selfie. Of course.

“No, of course not,” muttered Nico. He wondered vaguely how Thalia was doing. Probably way worse. She was really bad at emotions.

He sent out a text to his number and handed it back to Will. “Just because I now also have your number, don’t expect me to text back first,” he said. “I’m still shitty at it.”

“I wasn’t expecting you to,” he said. He winced. “Not in, like, a mean way or anything, just-”

“Calm down, Solace,” Nico said. He could feel himself grin. “I know what you meant.”

“Oh, good,” he said. “I’ve got soccer practice now, so I’ve gotta go. I’ll text you.”

“Yeah,” said Nico. “I’ll look out for it.” Will smiled, relieved, almost.

“Good,” he said. “It was nice meeting you.”

“It was nice meeting you, too,” said Nico. Will gave one more heart shattering grin, then turned around and jogged off.

**Author's Note:**

> this is like the first time i've ever written a multi chap story and had like! ideas! for the whole thing! so like yeah. exciting.
> 
> if u want updates on this follow my pjo insta account @battleukulele or my regular insta @therevolutionsayshi.  
> remember to comment. I will give you sunflowers and roses.


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